DESPITE starting the game on top, Prudhoe and Stocksfield left South Shields with a 51-6 mauling to mull over.

The away side put their opponents under the cosh in the early exchanges but were unable to get the scoreboard ticking, Shields taking full advantage to run away with things.

The turning point came when P&S pushed looking for a break through, a swift wheel seeing the ball turned over and Shields going over for their first try.

The speed and power at breakdowns from the home side caused problems, effectively putting into play a series of set moves which led to their second try of the afternoon when a three man line provided variation.

Prudhoe kept trying to open the game up but, with little ball, they were often forced into errors and it looked as though the hosts were going to amass a significant score.

However, a yellow card to Shields saw P&S get on the scoreboard from the resulting penalty.

But the hope soon disappeared when captain Jack Liddle found himself with a yellow card to his name, following a late and clumsy tackle.

Shields made full advantage of the extra man and managed a further two tries as they were able to gallop forward on the overlap.

Once restored to equal numbers, Prudhoe spent more time downfield and Steven Henderson slotted over a second penalty to give a half time score of 22-6.

The second half saw P&S struggle to hold the hosts, but it was a slight lapse in concentration which led to Shields extending their lead.

With the home side down to 14 men again, there were no further scores but Shields ran away with it in the final 10 minutes with four tries to add insult to injury for the weary visitors.